Biarritz: the complete guide

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France’s once-regal resort is now a shabby-chic surf spot – but it still oozes glamour

It’s come a long way, Biarritz. In the 15th century it was a grubby little whaling port in the heart of the Basque country, where local fishermen gutted whales on the beach.

By the 1600s it was already known for its sea-bathing – although locals remained suspicious: in 1609 a councillor complained that local women were swimming ‘naked under their bathing costumes’.

By the 1830s, Victor Hugo could still describe this French-Spanish-Basque-Gascon backwater as a rural place ‘with red roofs and green shutters’ –although he reckoned the town’s glorious setting, with its silvery beaches and backdrop of green mountains, would